The International Marine Minerals Society's Code for Environmental Management of Marine Mining

Abstract

Initiated by the International Marine Minerals Society (IMMS) following a request by the marine mining industry at the 2000 Underwater Mining Institute (UMI) and adopted in 2001 following extensive and wide-ranging consultation, the Code for Environmental Management of Marine Mining (the Code) anticipates and integrates environmental considerations for responsible marine mining. The Code is needed because little environmental regulation of marine mining exists, especially beyond the territorial sea and, other than the work by the International Sea Bed Authority, almost none in any marine areas beyond national jurisdiction. This regulatory lacuna persists despite the mandatory and unqualified requirement under international law for states “to preserve and protect the marine environment” (Article 192; 1982 UN Convention on the Law of the Sea (LOSC)). This obligation applies everywhere, regardless of the nature of the activity or its location. It requires States to ensure compliance by all entities, including companies, operating under their jurisdiction or control. The Code seeks to complement national and international marine mining environmental regulations where they exist, and to provide environmental principles and guidelines where these are absent or could be improved. Where the Code sets higher standards than those legally required, following those higher standards and striving to improve the legally binding requirements are encouraged. Thus the Code shoulders marine environmental protection duties for marine mining that international law assigns to but mostly remain unmet by States. Comprised of Environmental Principles and Operating Guidelines, the Code sets broad directions in the context of shared values, rather than prescribing specific practices. Its comprehensive scope ranges from research, exploration and exploitation to decommissioning and rehabilitation. It provides a framework to develop and implement an environmentally responsible program for marine minerals exploration and extraction and a benchmark for stakeholders to assess proposed and actual best environmental practices at marine mining sites. The Code also assists in meeting the marine mining industry's requirement for regulatory predictability and minimization of risk, including environmental risks, and in facilitating financial and operational planning. Designed to be a living, adaptive document, the Code requires periodic reviews, focussing on modifications based on experience with its implementation and in light of developments in the field of marine mining and associated environmental practices, in consultation with the marine mining industry and with other stakeholders in marine mining operations. With the imminent advent of commercial-scale marine polymetallic sulphide mining, the marine mining industry at the 2008 UMI proposed that the IMMS coordinate the first review of the Code. The review process includes assessing other mining codes and environmental guidelines (from, e.g., Global Reporting Initiative, International Council on Mining and Metals, International Institute for Environment and Development, International Seabed Authority, and Minerals Council of Australia), as well as the international law of the sea, especially the LOSC and its Part XI (Deep Seabed Mining) Implementation Agreement, and international environmental law. Extensive world-wide consultation is ongoing. Invaluable comments are being received from a broad range of stakeholders. This review is nearly complete. The revised Code, whose adoption is expected at the IMMS Annual General Meeting, to be held in conjunction with the 40th meeting of the UMI, scheduled for 14–16 September 2011, in Hilo, Hawaii, is presented together with a discussion of the comments received and the analysis described above. For the foreseeable future, the IMMS Code will be the only international instrument specifically designed to guide environmentally responsible and sustainable marine mining. It is likely to serve as an example when legally binding legislation is eventually introduced. The Code is an instructive example of a constructive and proactive industrial initiative to address the environmental concerns raised by an emerging industry. It is hoped that the Code and its evolution can assist other emerging marine industries seeking to engage constructively with their environmental challenges.